Long COVID took running away from Matt Fitzgerald for more than three years. With no sign of recovery, he signed up for the Javelina Jundred, a 100K trail race in Arizona's Sonoran Desert, and ran it on a day of record-breaking 99-degree heat.

Matt joins Alex and Jen to talk about his new book, Dying to Run: An Athlete's Quest for One More Finish. He explains why he needed closure, why the race had to be 100 kilometers, and why he felt he had already won the morning after he registered. They also talk about running as a dependency, how competitiveness and spirituality fit together for him, why he wants running to be a big tent, and how to adjust your goals when a race goes wrong. No spoilers: you'll have to read the book to find out how the race ends.

Dying to Run is available in print, digital, and audio wherever you buy books. For Matt's coaching and training plans, visit 8020endurance.com.

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Ultra-processed foods aren't just chips and soda. On this episode, Abbie and Alex dig into what UPFs actually are, why the science around them is worth paying attention to, and how to shift your eating without losing your mind or reading every label at the grocery store.

Abbie walks us through the categories researchers use to define how processed a food really is, before they cover some of the startling results from studies on ultra-processed foods. They also share some practical tips on how to limit your intake of UPFs, including a "green, yellow, red" traffic light system. By the way, that's "amber," not "yellow," in the UK.

Then comes pantry confession time: with three teenagers at home, Alex freely admits their pantry is a "red light district." Abbie and Alex each pick one UPF they're keeping without judgment, one they're committing to swap for a healthier option, and one they're still figuring out.

Plus, on The Warm Up: a ridiculous article from Runner's World that looks at what Apple wearable data tells us about increasing VO2 max. Hint: it's a lot of work for minimal returns.

Alex and Abbie have strong opinions about fitness gear. Some of those opinions cost them money. Alex and Abbie compare notes on who has the worse impulse control when it comes to fitness purchases, share the gear that genuinely changed how they train and come clean about their biggest misses.

They work through where it's fine to go budget versus where you really should spend the money (sports bras and socks, anyone?). They debate the gear one of them loves that the other thinks is completely pointless (the tiny plyo box, the weighted vest, the handheld running bottle). Then comes the recovery gear tier list: foam rollers, massage guns, lacrosse balls, compression socks, cupping kits and recovery creams, all ranked S through F.

They close with the question that divides the running community: do carbon plate shoes actually make a difference, or are mid-pack runners just paying $270 to feel fast?

Plus, on this week's Warm Up: new research on why five-minute walking breaks during your desk job can meaningfully lower your blood sugar and blood pressure, and the science behind why unpleasant gastrointestinal incidents happen to endurance athletes, prompted by a certain viral Hyrox moment that was all over social media this week.